Modern vehicles include many electronic and processor-based subsystems that carry out a variety of operations. The prior art includes electronic control units (ECUs) that can be used to perform various control schemes, diagnostic routines, and other processes related to the operation of vehicles. A vehicle such as an automobile may include an ECU that is programmed to perform diagnostic checks on other onboard subsystems. Some diagnostic checks may be performed while the vehicle is in an active operating state, and other diagnostic checks may be performed during periods of inactivity, e.g., while the vehicle is shut down. In this regard, embedded controllers may be designed to wake themselves up (via an onboard timer) to monitor certain vehicle systems during vehicle shut-down periods.
Accordingly, it is desirable to have a technique and methodology to diagnose the operation of a controller wake up feature in an accurate and energy efficient manner. Furthermore, other desirable features and characteristics will become apparent from the subsequent detailed description and the appended claims, taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings and the foregoing technical field and background.